Information seeking

Orientation to the topic

• You can use ChatGPT for inspiration when brainstorming and formulating a research question. Be prepared for the fact that it may include prejudiced assumptions in the discussion. Remember that the free version was trained with data until 2021 and has no knowledge of the latest research results. Therefore, your information might be out of date. 

Search preparation

• ChatGPT can help you find good keywords for your information search. It's a good idea to ask ChatGPT to complete its list of keywords several times rather than settle for the first answer. However, it does not replace the need to familiarise yourself with industry glossaries and terminology. Always check the latest terms used by experts in your field.
• ChatGPT can help you identify tools or databases suitable for your topic. Please note that it may not provide a comprehensive answer regarding field-specific databases. Comprehensive information on information sources is available from the library's Databases A-Z list.
• ChatGPT is not able to formulate search phrases for searching for scientific information. If you ask it to create search phrases, you will probably have to edit and reformat them.

How to perform a search

• ChatGPT cannot help you with the actual information retrieval. 
  • It does not know how to search for information systematically and transparently.
• ChatGPT can tell you how the database works. However, we recommend that you check the instructions directly from the database of your choice. The functionality may have changed since 2021, and ChatGPT's response may be outdated.

Evaluation of results

• You cannot use ChatGPT to evaluate search results. Evaluating the quality of information is an important human skill, based on both objective and subjective criteria. As a researcher or student, you need to decide whether the source is relevant to your work.
• However, you can use ChatGPT to clarify and translate difficult texts, which is good for condensing or reformatting text. However, remember source criticism, i.e., not believing everything and that the service may present biased views and the translation may not be accurate. 

Citation and references

• ChatGPT is unable to provide correct sources for the texts it writes. It can produce a bibliography when requested, but usually, the sources are incorrect or completely fabricated.
• Also, ChatGPT cannot generate bibliographies according to citation patterns. Reference managers like Zotero support many citation styles and are good tools for managing your references.

When using AI applications, always consider how they process the data you enter. As a rule, all material entered into AI services is stored outside the EU/EEA and cannot be removed. For example, do not enter personal data, business secrets, and confidential information. It is a breach of confidentiality. 
 

Modified from the chart ”Is it safe to use ChatGPT for your task?” By Aleksander Tiulkanov CCBY

Keenious

• Free and paid versions. The paid version, Keenious Plus, has more features than the free version. When logged in, you get acce.ss to more features.
• A tool that utilises existing text as a basis for information retrieval. It searches for articles on the same topic based on a ready-made article or other text entered into it. In addition to article search, Keenious produces a list of topics that it interprets as related to the text entered into it. Based on this, the user can refine their search.
• In addition to the website, the tool can also be used with a Word or Google Docs plug-in

Semantic Scholar

• It is free to use, but signing up gives you access to more features.
• The search operates in the same way as Google Scholar.
• Displays article citations and tries to find not only the most cited articles but also the most relevant articles. It also makes article recommendations based on articles selected by the user.
• Suitable for those interested in filtering and organising search results and saving articles for new recommendations.

Elcit

• Getting started with the service is free but requires a login. After a certain amount of use, you will need to pay to continue to use Elicit. The price is determined by the amount of use.
• The tool searches for and summarises scientific articles based on a given research question or article. Unlike traditional search services, Elicit does not indicate the number of search results on the search results page but displays the seven most relevant articles.
• Elicit also offers other academic work tools; it helps formulate a research question, analyse articles, and create abstracts.

Litmaps

• Free and paid versions are available, but there are differences in the number of articles and maps.
• It can create a bibliography map with data from one or several publications using BibTeX/RIS files.
• Litmaps displays relationships between scientific articles in a dynamic network graph. It makes suggestions for articles based on links between them, which can help you find articles outside of a traditional keyword search.

Research Rabbit

• Usage requires an account.
• The tool can help you find new connections between different phenomena and researchers.
• You start to use the tool by adding one good article to the collection. The tool generates recommendations based on items in your collection using headlines, abstracts, and other metadata.
• It helps you visualise the networks formed between publications. You can move forward on the map and create new networks of publications with authors and sources.

• Can AI be used in the task? If so, where? And how should it be reported?

• Misinformation is either incomplete or false information that is given inadvertently. It is not intended to mislead deliberately.
• Disinformation is deliberately shared misinformation that can be motivated by, among other things, political and social influence, economic gain, and damage.

• AI tools may not disclose their sources, nor may they use sources that meet the requirements for scientific writing. In some cases, sources have proven to be fictitious or inaccurate. If you're using a tool to produce some elements of your work, the person reviewing the work needs to know which bits are yours and which aren’t.
• AI-based search tools might give the impression that they can do scientific research easily and quickly. However, this may mean the student fails to learn essential scientific research skills such as information retrieval, critical thinking, source evaluation, and problem-solving.

• For example, to use ChatGPT, you need to create an account. The terms of use for your account permit the service to gather your input and personal data, which is a privacy issue. AI tools may require you to provide a phone number or other personal information.
• You should always be careful about what information you share when creating an account online.
• Be sure to carefully review the program's privacy policy and terms of use. Remember that when using these tools, your conversations are typically recorded and used by the service in the future.

• In some cases, AI tools can access online material without the authors' permission. Compliance with intellectual property rights is a core part of good scientific practices and the ethical conduct of research, so it is essential to take a critical view of using such tools in your work.